Significance – Shelly Crane

I normally don’t go for stories like this, but I was in a mood. Not a reading slump thankfully, but I was looking for something romantic and not too serious and this book was perfect. Significance is centered around imprinting. Yes imprinting, that hated thing from Twilight. But it’s not as bad in Significance. Well mostly. Neither book does a good job of explaining why imprinting occurs (other than Stephenie Meyer doing it to make her shape-shifting werewolves weirder and Shelly Crane doing it as the focal point of the story), but Crane at least talks about the pros and cons of imprinting and tries to explain the origin of imprinting. Because of this added depth I was able to read Significance without pulling my hair out or wanting to throw my tablet (I was reading the ebook version) at the wall.

The first thing I loved about Significance and further proof I was in a mood was the love between Caleb and Maggie. Their love seemed so deep and intense and genuine. It was pink and fluffy and overwhelming. I found myself getting so caught up in their romance that I would be smiling and giggling and just being a general weirdo in public. But it was worth it because I needed that book to consume me just like Maggie and Caleb’s love wanted them to consume each other. I needed to believe that two people could love each other completely knowing that other person completely even if that love came with a price, even if that love was caused by imprinting. This is about the point where most people, and a more rational me, would become skeptical. If given a choice between being more than human, but dependent upon someone and being human and independent, most of us would choose the latter. And that’s where one of the disadvantages of this type of imprinting comes into play. Caleb and Maggie receive an intense love and eventually develop superhuman abilities, but the cost is that they have to be in constant contact otherwise they fall ill. Again I loved the romance between Caleb and Maggie, but there’s such a fine line that separates their relationship from healthy and unhealthy. However, since my more emotional self was reading this book, every time rational me tried to expose her to the flaws in this book, emotional me would scream at her to go away so she could have some fun. (Is it weird that I’m talking about myself as if I’m two different people? Yes… No. Maybe… Let’s keep going.)

The second thing I loved about Significance was that Maggie didn’t just accept her imprint calmly with a shrug as if nothing had changed. Sure 95% of the story is Maggie enjoying the imprint and being with Caleb, but my favorite parts of the story were when Caleb wasn’t comforting Maggie and wasn’t touching her and she freaked the f*** out. One minutes she’s thinking “Oh, I can get used to this” and then the next she’s thinking “Do I have to marry this guy? I barely know him. What do they mean they’re not human? What else could they be?” These aren’t direct quotes, but it’s the general feeling of when Maggie flips the script. Maggie’s mini-breakdowns made her more relatable and proved that while she may have imprinted, she wasn’t brain washed.

The only thing that I didn’t like about Significance was the ending. It felt a bit abrupt. In the book, there are two plots: Caleb and Maggie adjusting to their imprint; and Marcus trying to interfere in the imprint. Even though I feel like the former came to an acceptable close, the latter didn’t. Yeah the Watsons and Jacobsons have their “throw down,” but I would have also liked if Crane had been a bit more clear on whether the fight was completely over or if Marcus was going to retaliate. I don’t even want anything too elaborate. For example, if Marcus is going to continue fighting, as I suspect he will, I would have enjoyed if Marcus had entered Maggie’s dreams or texted her something along the lines of “This isn’t over b****.” I didn’t want, or need, a whole extra scene. I just needed an extra paragraph.

Nonetheless, I enjoyed Significance. However, this is the sort of book that you’ll either love or hate. If you’re in a more emotional, romantic mood, then you’ll love it, but if you’re in a more rational mood and identify the flaws in the story, then you’ll hate it. It’s all about the timing and the mood.